Baobei
by Jaina Weasley
Summary: This takes place directly after the events at Mr. Unverse's, and before they leave the planet. A detailed story of how Simon and Kaylee end up together. :


Standing in the engine room, Kaylee smiled to herself. Not two weeks ago, she and Simon had been on the brink of death. Just moments before being injured, Simon had turned to her, his face deceiving her, but his eyes saying otherwise, like they usually did. Just by looking at his eyes, Kaylee was usually able to understand what Simon truly meant. The rest of his face was typically like etched stone; slightly cold, impassive.

He explained to Kaylee once how the Blue Hands had cut into his sister's brain and made it impossible to ignore feelings. Simon didn't let onto it, but he felt things almost as deeply, and Kaylee could see it in those eyes of his. When he was around his sister, his eyes gleamed in worry, anger, fear… With the Captain, his eyes turned to icy determination. When he was with Kaylee, though, his eyes always seemed to see right into her. He looked at her with a deep sense of joy. Kaylee played it off, acted like those looks from him didn't scare her one bit. But she was scared; because when he looked at her that way, she worried she might collapse, her knees buckling beneath her.

Simon had apologized. Apologized for ignoring her, for pushing her away, to protect his sister. He promised to make it up to her. Not long later, she got shot with four darts down her neck- and she began slowly fading from consciousness. Simon had immediately jumped to her aide. She looked up at him as he held her head. His eyes, swimming in a pool of worry, darted from her, to his sister, to the battle that lay before him. Kaylee had quick found a sense of calm, and then realized how proud she was feeling for the Doc. He was the only one left uninjured, along with Inara- Jayne had been shot, Zoe sliced down her back, River was huddled in her corner, and Kaylee lay unable to move after those darts. He turned to keep fighting, but it was apparent in moments that they needed to get behind those blast doors.

They laid her down on top of a trunk. The blast doors were closing as Simon realized his medical supplies were outside- and then it happened. A direct shot with a gun hit him just below his heart, and he fell. As Kaylee faded in and out of consciousness, she could see Simon wrenching in pain on the ground next to her. He was muttering, gasping for breath, about what he needed in order to keep them alive- and it was outside the blast doors. Then River suddenly seemed awake for one of the first times since joining the _Serenity_ crew, and she ran outside, throwing Simon's supplies back into the corridor.

The doors shut, and there they were, five injured. Mal walked in, bleeding, stabbed, and limping. Simon continued uttering to Inara what she could do to help, but he himself seemed to be fading. Kaylee knew he was worrying about his sister, but he was a pro. Simon would keep helping everyone- they'd helped him, after all. It wasn't long after this that Kaylee forgot what was happening.

When she came to, the doctor lay on a gurney to the left of hers. His eyes were wide open- watching her- but he was silent. He had been shot in such a fashion that required him to remain shirtless during the removal of the bullet, and no one had replaced his shirt since. Kaylee herself was connected to the only known life support monitor on _Serenity_. Simon, upon realizing Kaylee was awake, lifted his right arm in a hesitant wave and gave her a deep, warm smile.

"_There_ you are," he greeted her, quietly.

"I never left," Kaylee croaked, realizing she'd like a big cup of water. She frowned, actually remembering that Simon had been shot where it should have been fatal. "Are you- are you alright?"

"I'm fine, I'm fine. The bullet hit just below my heart, but not deep enough to puncture much more than a little muscle and crack some ribs," Simon explained, careful calculation in his voice to avoid using terminology she wouldn't have known anyway.

"Muscle, eh?" Kaylee teased.

A small furrow came to Simon's forehead, obviously frustrated with her jab. Looking at Kaylee, though, he smiled, realizing she was joking. "Are you kidding me? Look at me, here!" At least he was _trying_ to loosen up.

Kaylee obliged. He was far from hard to look at, especially recently. After a glance and a grin, her face took its own solemn pause. "What happened to everyone else? Are they alright?"

Simon glanced around the room, as best he could. It was apparent that he'd been set in a place where he could watch others who came into the infirmary. It was also clear that most people were already on the mend, but Mal was lying on the other side of Simon, recovering from a sword stabbing and some gunshots. "Mal will likely pull through, but I've ordered him to rest. Otherwise, Jayne's shot to the arm was nothing he hadn't dealt with before, and Zoe's cut to her back just needed some bandaging."

"What about your sister?" Kaylee knew Simon would have said something if River had been hurt- he was hopelessly devoted to protecting her.

"She's fine. A couple cuts and bruises, but most of the blood upon her after her fight with the Reavers belonged only to the Reavers," Simon had started out smiling, but by the end, his eyes were staring into someplace distant. Kaylee vaguely began to remember the opening of the blast doors; seeing River standing amongst the dead bodies of dozens of Reavers.

Smiling, Kaylee said, "Well, that's good news, ain't it, Doc?"

Her words snapped Simon out of his daze. "Yes, yes, it certainly is."

"How did you make it through?" Kaylee asked.

"Zoe has had some experience with removing bullets- she removed that one from my leg after the ordeal with Early- so after administering me with some adrenaline, I stayed awake as possible to conduct her through the process of removing the bullet," Simon explained.

"Wow… and what about… what about me?" Kaylee said softly, smiling.

"As soon as they got the bullet out of me and made sure I was stabilized, they let me tell them what to give you. I don't really remember much of it, but I did seem to give them the right directions, as you're alive and talking to me. I was quite delirious myself. Ever since I woke up, I've been worrying about whether or not I gave the right directions."

Kaylee laughed. Oh, that boy could be a little fun sometimes, when he just let go. She dropped her voice to a whisper. "Well thank you, Simon. It's amazing we ever got along without you."

"No it's not," Simon answered, "before me, you didn't have to deal with River."

"Quit apologizin' for her, Simon. I'll admit that she's something terrifyin', but she _did_ save our lives, this time," Kaylee put the subject to rest. "So, am I allowed to get up and out of here? What's our status?"

"Well, yes… you're welcome to leave the infirmary any time now that you've rested and recovered. Our status, insofar as _Serenity_ goes, is going to be for you and the Captain to decide."

Kaylee felt her heart sink. This was not usually a two-person job. It was three. They had lost Wash before they even left the ship for their run into Mr. Universe's lair.

"Simon, I know I keep asking questions… but what happened to Wash?"

Simon looked down, toward his chest, and then his gaze drifted to the corner of the room that Kaylee had not been facing. There was a body, wrapped in white sheets. "When.. when we landed, Reaver ships began shooting giant spears into our hull. The first one drove through Wash's chest." His gaze came back to her, his eyes swimming in tears.

Kaylee felt tears well up in her own eyes. Soon, she felt herself heaving her chest to breathe, beginning to cry. Upon seeing this, Simon cautiously rose from his gurney to come to Kaylee's side, with the aide of a crutch. He held her hand, and she rose to sit next to where he was standing. Leaving his left hand down due to his wound, he brought his right arm around her, and she grabbed around his chest, tightly. He gasped, briefly, at the pressure being put upon his chest, but slowly found the strength to even bring his left arm around her. Simon had pulled her into a tight, cradling hug. For the first time since before arriving on Miranda, Kaylee felt safe. Drawing back from her, Simon's hand came up her back, finding its way into her thick hair and under the nape of her neck. He gave her a deep look into her eyes, and she felt weak.

"I meant what I said back there. This whole time I've been with this crew, I've been someplace else, worried only about my sister. But in that time, I've grown to really care for all of you. You really are a second family for us," Simon paused. He was standing over her, and her face was level with his chest. "For me."

Taking a good look at the gauze on Simon's chest, Kaylee bit her lip with worry. "Simon… that looks awful," she said, raising her eyes to meet his, "Don't you get hurt like that again."

"Only if you won't get hurt like _that_," Simon said, tracing his finger down the four dart holes running down her neck.

"It's a deal," Kaylee said lightly, standing to meet him. His hands still rested so that he was holding her by her elbows. Edging slowly, closely toward Simon, Kaylee put her hands on the outside of his shoulders. Firmly, Simon pushed her elbows toward him, so that she was forced to come closer. His eyes were fixed on hers, reassuring and calming her. Putting his hand back under her hair and against her neck, and the other around her shoulder blades, he drew her in. Naturally, Kaylee followed suit, although a bit surprised by the doctor's sudden decisiveness. Closing her eyes, she raised her head, and at that instant, his lips found hers.

For a moment, their lips merely touched, electricity snapping in the small amount of air between them. Then, firmly, he moved his hand through her hair, onto her head, and brought her in for a real kiss. They pressed toward each other, drawing themselves onto their toes for a moment, and then Simon backed his hand back down her neck and slowly began to release her. Again, she followed suit, but opened her eyes to look at him. They stopped, gazing at one another for a moment.

Her voice caught in her throat as she gleefully said, "Simon!"

His head cocked, and he gave her the biggest grin she'd ever seen him put on. He hugged her again, as tightly as he possibly could. It was the same kind of hug you give to someone after you've missed them for too long of time- as if they had reunited after being apart for months, or even years. "Kaylee."

Two days later, Simon had released everyone from the infirmary. He felt that the Captain could probably have used a few more days there, but Mal was too eager to keep moving. Simon couldn't blame him. Over the better part of the last year, he and his sister had been the cause of many of the _Serenity_'s crew's woes, and they managed to stay safer when out in space.

Today would be the day of the funeral. Zoe and Inara had found a nice mountaintop nearby, and they would all be riding the shuttle there for a short service. Simon stood alone, in front of a mirror in his small living quarters. Looking down to button his vest, dark hair fell into his eyes. He hadn't found the desire or motivation to mess with his hair, and he couldn't honestly bring his left arm up high enough to do so anyway. He began to push his hair back as best he could with his right arm when a small knocking came at his door, which immediately was slid open. He stopped in the midst of pushing back his hair, seeing Kaylee standing at the entrance. His arm dropped, letting his hair fall back into his eyes.

"Let me help you with that," Kaylee said softly, and she hurried over to push his hair back herself. When she was done, she pulled back to survey Simon. He took this moment to look at her, too. Her dress was simple, but she was entrenched within a large, heavy jacket.

"Is it really that cold out there?" Simon asked, having not been outside of the ship since their adventure in Mr. Universe's compound. He picked up the jacket to his suit, and struggled to put it on. Kaylee quickly came around to assist him.

"Sure is. Better take one of them fancy heavy coats you have," she smiled. Simon grabbed the crutch he'd been using, which was leaning against the sink. He then turned and moved as quickly as possible to a hook behind his door, which held a heavy, black coat. He took it down, turned around, and smiled sheepishly at Kaylee.

"Could you help me with this one too?" Simon asked, and Kaylee obliged.

"Maybe you'll need me to help you get out of this later," she said, although Simon wasn't sure if she was joking or being serious. He felt himself reverting to the way he was when they were in the viewing booth when they saw a cow fetus on display. He grinned and looked down, bringing his right hand up to press on his forehead, and drag it down to rub his eye.

"I, uh, thanks, that would help some. That's very kind of you," he replied, his face and tone turning serious.

"Stiff!" Kaylee exclaimed.

"No, I wasn't!" Simon said, exasperated.

"Yes you were, Doctor Tam," she gave him a hard look. "We've talked about this before."

"I'm sorry, I just don't know how-"

Kaylee rolled her eyes, and brought her hands up, to put them on his arms. "It's alright, you. Come on, we have somewhere to be."

Simon smiled kindly, but let out a sigh of frustration. "Wait a moment… I have something I'd like to give you. I tried to buy you something you'd like, rather than something I'd like…" Simon muttered as his right hand rifled through his heavy coat's pocket. Pulling out something bulky, wrapped merely in paper towels, he said, "Sorry, I'm not much for presentation these days."

Kaylee's eyes grew wide; she loved presents no matter how they were wrapped. Gasping, she unwrapped a large, gold pendant that was on a chain. The character simply read, _Marriage_. "…Simon!" She slowly drew her eyes up from the pendant and looked at him with an unbelieving expression.

Simon rushed to say, "It doesn't mean we're engaged or anything. And you don't have to wear it. I just thought you'd really like that one, and it's something…" he paused. "It's something I do think about with you."

"Simon, I've been holding out for a year for you. I'll be anything you want me to be. A friend, a girlfriend, a fiancé, a wife, a toy- I don't care! I want to be with you too," Kaylee gripped the pendant and wrapped her arms around his broad shoulders. Slowly moving away, she kissed him under his ear, and lingered, laying her head on his shoulder.

"_Baobei_," Simon said, "It's time to go to the funeral."

"I like that," Kaylee smiled and pulled away, starting to put her pendant around her neck.

"Like what?" Simon asked.

"You calling me _baobei_."

Simon grinned at her as he offered her an arm. "Let's go, _baobei_."


End file.
